Docklands, East Balam Dockyard.
In the past, it was a large shipyard designed and built by the Kingdom of Loen in order to conquer the Southern Continent. After completing its mission, it fell silent for a period of time. But with the process of industrialization, it was slightly transformed and given a new mission, which made it active again, even far better than before.
Now, it is the hub of Backlund's water transportation. It has five levels of ship berths from low to high, allowing almost any ship to be flush with the dock.
This design provides convenience for shipping to a great extent, so it is no exaggeration to say that as long as medium-sized or above cargo ships come to Backlund, they will definitely berth here.
At two o'clock in the afternoon, Varina arrived near the dock.
He pretended to be moved by Susan's "cool idea" and took the opportunity to ask her a lot of relevant information. Finally, he agreed to come here to receive the goods on Susan's behalf, which satisfied both parties.
Varina found the cargo ship, but learned that the captain had gone to the nearby Workers' Union Tavern, so he had to find it again.
He needed to discuss the handover of the goods with the captain before going to the Dock Workers Association to hire workers to transport the goods back to the factory. The most important point was that he needed the "Cargo List" in the hands of the captain.
The Workers' Union Tavern is much larger than the Brave Bar, but luckily it's two o'clock in the afternoon and there aren't many people drinking. Varina glanced around and saw the iconic dark blue bicorn hat on the table of a middle-aged man with a vicissitudes of life.
He walked over directly and asked:
"Captain Trevor?"
The middle-aged man looked up at him and said, "Yes, you are?"
"I was sent by Silun Textile Factory to receive the goods."
Varina took out the "Acceptance Letter" that Susan gave him from his trouser pocket, stamped with the factory's seal, and placed it in front of the man.
Captain Trevor opened the folded note, glanced at it, and returned it to Varina, muttering.
He drank the remaining wine in the glass, put the glass on the table, grabbed his bicorn hat, stood up and said:
"Come on, follow me back to the ship."
In the captain's cabin, Trevor took out the well-printed "Cargo List" from a small locked box and handed it to Varina's hand.
For him, this was a necessary step. But in reality, Varina had another copy given to him by Susan, which had been delivered ahead of time through the kingdom's communications system.
Varina opened it in person. After confirming that there was no problem with the list, he confirmed: "Can I hire workers now?"
"Of course." Trevor nodded.
"I still need a little help," Varina looked at the captain, "I don't know how many workers I should hire?"
Captain Trevor smiled.
He reached out and patted Varina on the shoulder and said: "This is something that the dock union needs to worry about. You just need to report the contents of the list to them."
"Thank you for your advice."
Varina thanked him and left, arriving at the Dockworkers Association not far away.
This is an old two-story yellow building. After the Dead Eel Gang took over, they made some renovations and used the first floor as an office hall to receive their employers.
The furnishings in the hall are quite simple. There are a row of benches on both sides of the entrance, with a few people sitting sparsely on them. Directly opposite is a long counter with a dozen bookkeepers who look to be fifteen or sixteen years old.
He explained his purpose, and the boy opposite hurriedly wrote down the key information, and was about to go up to the second floor with the note.
"Wait a minute," Varina stopped the boy, "I want to borrow the bathroom here, is that okay?"
The boy nodded: "Yes, the bathroom is on the second floor, opposite the stairwell, but other places on the second floor are forbidden to outsiders."
The two went upstairs together, the boy went straight to the innermost room, and Varina entered the bathroom.
The layout of the second floor is not complicated, and Varina roughly understood it after scanning it before entering the bathroom.
Coming up from the stairs, you are directly facing the bathroom. On the left is a long corridor, leading to the innermost office. There are several rooms on both sides of the corridor. Due to the limited viewing angle, Varina cannot see them clearly. specific purpose.
The boy entered the office, walked up to a red-haired man, and handed a note, "Mr. Kirk, delivery order from Silen Textile Factory."
Kirk took the note and waved the boy away as he read it.
He quickly raised his head again and shouted: "Quaid, take 50 people and deliver this batch of goods."
…
When Varina came out of the bathroom, he saw two people waiting at the door, the boy and a fierce-looking man.
"Sir, this is Mr. Quaid who is delivering the goods for you. He will arrange everything."
The boy made an introduction and went downstairs on his own. At this time, Quaid took the initiative and said, "Let's go, let's go find someone first."
Varina followed him out of the workers' association building and soon came to an open space on the corner of the street.
A large group of strong laborers in simple clothes gathered in the open space. They saw Quaid and Varina from a distance, and they approached spontaneously before the two came closer.
"Pay attention to the rules and don't let the guests see the joke!"
When Quaid spoke, the crowd's pushing and shoving movements immediately subsided. Soon, they became quiet and focused only on Quaid.
"Delivery to Shillun Textile Factory, 8p, I only need 50."
As soon as the words fell, the crowd immediately became chaotic again. This time, Quaid said nothing.
After a while, the crowd selected 50 people according to their own rules, and the rest showed disappointed expressions and dispersed.
Varina witnessed the whole process. Although his face remained calm, this scene actually shocked him a lot. He knew that the life of lower-level workers was difficult, but he did not expect it to be so difficult. For 8 pence, he saw many people with nosebleeds or black eyes, but they still smiled.
This is still the case!
When the Corn Laws are repealed, their lives will be even more difficult.
And this is not the limit!
Warina felt chilled in his heart when he thought of the "Backlund Great Smog Incident" in the future.
"Let's go, where does the boat stop?"
Quaid's voice brought Wariner's mind back to reality. He took one last look at the crowd and took the lead.
When he arrived at the cargo ship, Varina found that Captain Trevor had already arranged the manpower, and he only needed to wait for him to bring people over before he could start unloading the cargo.
Workers and sailors cooperated, like ants moving, unloading the goods from the ship bit by bit. During this time, Varina and the captain stood aside, each holding a list to reconcile.
After a long time, both parties made sure that the inventory was correct, and Varina handed the "Letter of Acceptance" to Trevrey, and then returned to the Silen Textile Factory with the goods.
After pushing Quaid to Susan, the subsequent matters were also handed back to Susan's hands, and Varina breathed a sigh of relief.
"It didn't mess it up, in a double sense."
